Every month, we ask your internet crushes questions so that you don’t have to

Ruby Brunton

photo by Anastasia Blades

Handles? Twitter and Tumblr is @rubybrunton, Instagram is @armoramour which is based on a Bill Cunningham quote “fashion is the armor to survive the reality of everyday life.” Credit to my ex for that one since it’s The It’s Over Issue and all.

Where are you from, where do you live now? I was born on the snowy mesa in New Mexico, grew up in the green hills of Wellington, New Zealand, and currently call the sprawling concrete jungle of New York home.

How would you describe your sartorial profile? My personal style aesthetic revolves around “whatever I can find in the thrift store” and “whenever I don’t wear black I feel like I’m doing it for someone else.” If I ever have money I spend it on jeans and shoes, because those should mould to you, and lingerie, because it makes me feel good.

What are you listening to these days? KAYTRANADA’s Soundcloud, Lloyd Banks’ back catalogue, Spotify Discover Weekly, whatever’s new from Kelela, FKA Twigs, Beach House, Jam City, Santigold, and the latest Erykah tape.

What’s your beauty and grooming routine, if you have one? Heavens, I’m the wrong person to ask! My hair and skin are forever being unruly and adverse to instruction and otherwise reflective of my personality. I follow Juliana Huxtable’s advice in xojane and have felt great since drinking a glass of lemon water every morning. One day I’ll invest in a mask lol.

What is your single favorite piece of clothing? I have this “dress” that’s essentially a circle cut out of floaty red silk. It flares out when I dance and shows off most of my underwear. It’s very fancy and has so far only been seen in selfies. So basically I need someone reading this to get their shit together and take me as their plus one to an Event so I can wear it.

Any projects or people you’re really interested in right now that you wanna turn Mask readers on to? I’m really excited about self publishing at the moment. I like the idea of not having to rely on other people’s opinion of you or your work to get it published. It’s especially hard to get poetry published and so I’m very enthusiastic about my fav poets putting their work out in zines, like Tommy Pico, Kayla Morse, Max Steele, Stephon Lawrence.

I’m also into how email newsletters are allowing writers to share work that they want to share - I’m interested in setting one up that’s based around the conversations all these great people I know are having in the DMs, Gchats and so on but no one else gets to read. Look out for that one ... it’ll feature all your problematic favs.

Sophia Hussain

Where are you from, where do you live now? Marin County, a nice but not innocent suburb in the Bay Area. I moved to Brooklyn a year and a half ago.

How would you describe your sartorial profile? Jasmine from Aladdin has been a formative influence. I love rocking anything off the shoulder, gold jewelry, and sea foam green. I still envy her bod and hair length. There are a lot of people I try to emulate, like Bianca Jagger or @palomija, but maybe because I’m a Capricorn or maybe because I'm from the Bay Area, I can’t seem to shake a certain level of earthiness. High-femme to Cali-skater-boi earthiness.

What are you listening to these days? Kelela’s new EP is perfect. Le1f’s Riot Boi is like listening to an omniscient club god who’s also down to earth and gets you. Justin Bieber. I’m doing pretty good if I listen Did It On’em once a week. I actually have a soft spot for Christmas music but it’s been so warm that it just feels premature. “679” has a good jingle for now.

What’s your beauty and grooming routine, if you have one? Inconsistent. I’ve always been meaning to have one, but I can’t seem to wake up or fall asleep at the same time ever. I’m pretty much flying by the seat of my pants.

What is your single favorite piece of clothing? My mom’s old Everlast work out shirt. It’s shoulderless and sweatshirt material, kind of like dance wear.

What’s your favorite Google search? Oh god. I don’t even know if I want to know what the answer to that is. Vulgar curiosity about (person/place/thing).

Any projects or people you’re really interested in right now that you wanna turn Mask readers on to? Jamal Lewis aka @fatfemme’s documentary project No Fats, No Femmes looks utterly transformative. As our politicians attempt to reignite the war on terror (and liberals try to sedate us into thinking our violence is reasonable), Arun Kundnani’s The Muslims Are Coming! is required reading. If you’re Muslim, from a Muslim community, or a diasporic sad girl and need a reminder that your culture is beautiful, take solace in Humeysha and Fatima Al Qadiri's Ayshay.

Ash Jegroo

Where are you from, where do you live now? I’m from a quaint, little Latino and Asian neighborhood known as Sunset Park located in the People’s Republic of Brooklyn. I moved around to Queens and other parts of Brooklyn in junior high and high school, but now I’m back living on the same block I grew up on.

How would you describe your sartorial profile? I’ve never really thought about it. I guess I’d describe it as a kind of around-the-way anarcho-nihilist chic or maybe just leave it at “all black everything.”

What are you listening to these days? I’m always in the mood for hardcore Hip Hop, 90’s Dancehall Reggae, and obnoxious hardcore Punk. But I really haven’t kept up with the scenes like I used to do. Nowadays, I’m more likely to watch online battle rap than listen to a rap song. Right now, my favorite battlers are Hollow Da Don, B-Magic, Fresco, and Pat Stay.

What’s your beauty and grooming routine? I usually go to my barber every 2-3 weeks and get a six with a tape-up. The eyebrows gotta be on fleek too so they get shaped-up as well. I’d get manicures and pedicures on a regular basis if I could afford it, but for now, I get a mani-pedi every few months. And of course, manscaping is a must.

What’s your favorite Google search? I started really learning how to cook recently, so I now often find myself searching for recipes.

Any projects or people you’re really interested in right now that you wanna turn Mask readers on to? Anyone interested in grassroots, #BlackLivesMatter street activism in NYC should check out @NYC_ShutItDown and their weekly #PeoplesMonday protests. They’re the most active group in NYC right now, and they really do shut shit down. As for me personally, I’m hoping to do something soon about police brutality in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. And besides that, make sure to check out and share my This Week In ACAB column for Mask every week.

Ripley Soprano is a co-owner and co-conspirator of this here magazine.